A review of medication administration errors reported in a large psychiatric hospital in the United Kingdom

Camilla Malyn Haw*, Geoff Dickens, Jean Stubbs

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

40 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

A retrospective analysis of reports of medication administration errors over a period of three and a half years was carried out in a UK psychiatric hospital. A total of 112 errors and "near misses" were studied. The reporting rate increased over time. Psychotropic, intramuscular, and as-needed medications were overrepresented in the error reports. Fifteen percent of the errors had the potential to cause moderate or severe harm to patients. The two most common factors cited by nurses as contributing to error causation were a busy, noisy environment and personal factors, such as feeling tired or unsupported. Physicians were cited as having contributed to some errors.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1610-1613
Number of pages4
JournalPsychiatric Services
Volume56
Issue number12
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Dec 2005
Externally publishedYes

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